Environment
Need some good news about the environment? The Optimist Daily is your go-to herald of positive environmental news, highlighting eco-friendly solutions and scientific progress around climate action, circularity, conservation, and more. Learn about everything eco in our Environment section.
Beyond oil: inside Dubai's sustainable city
On the outskirts of Dubai, a shimmering metropolis built on buried oil lies a small but similarly suave community looking at a new way of doing things. It is no small irony that the world's most brazen exemplar of fossil-fueled excess is also home to a cutting-edge example of more thoughtful modern Read More...
Pacific nations resist US push to lift tuna quota
Pacific island nations have vowed to oppose US efforts to increase its catch limit in the world's largest tuna fishery, saying the proposal does nothing to improve sustainable fishing. The United States is expected to try to increase its quota for bigeye tuna at a meeting of the Western and Central Read More...
World’s largest maritime shipping company plans to ditch fossil fuels
The world’s largest container shipping company has embarked on a mission to become carbon-free by 2050. The biggest part of the process will be switching to carbon-neutral ships and urging the industry to find cleaner ways to power their massive vessels. This is a remarkable initiative Read More...
Italy’s fashion capital wants to plant 3 million trees by 2030
Milan has an ambitious plan to plant 3 million trees by 2030 in an attempt to relieve Italy’s fashion capital of air pollution and offer a more green touch to the cityscape’s grey-predominant architecture. The scheme is estimated to increase the number of trees by 30 percent which would absorb Read More...
How major cities can fight climate change... and make billions
Implementing green strategies like bike lanes and better building codes could bring 94 world cities a collective $583 billion worth of benefits, while fighting climate change, according to research by a global network of cities. C40 Cities pinpointed transport, buildings, and industry as priorities Read More...
World’s first honey bee vaccine to save the pollinators from dying
Scientists developed world’s first insect vaccine to help honey bees fight bacterial disease, one of the major threats that the pollinators face. The vaccine is administered through an edible sugar patty that’s suspended in the hive for the queen to consume over seven to 10 Read More...
Norway to become first country to ban palm oil in the fight to save rainforests
Norway is set to become the first country to put an end to its palm oil consumption as soon as 2020. The parliamentary decision has been welcomed as a victory in the fight against the palm oil industry which is one of the major contributors to catastrophic deforestation and wipe-out of natural Read More...
Sails make a comeback as shipping tries to go green
As the shipping industry faces pressure to cut climate-altering greenhouse gases, one answer is blowing in the wind. European and U.S. tech companies, including one backed by aeroplane maker Airbus, are pitching futuristic sails to help cargo ships harness the free and endless supply of wind Read More...
Grasslands more reliable carbon sink than trees
Forests have long served as a critical carbon sink, consuming about a quarter of the carbon dioxide pollution produced by humans worldwide. But decades of fire suppression, warming temperatures and drought have increased wildfire risks — turning California’s forests from carbon sinks to carbon Read More...
Madrid reduces traffic by 32 percent after banning cars in the city center
Madrid has taken the initiative of banning cars from entering a two square mile area in the city’s downtown to bring down air pollution. The strategy is an attempt to lower the city’s nitrogen dioxide levels that are believed to be the cause of roughly 3,000 premature deaths per year. The ban Read More...